Improvement in pipe or car couplings



A. G. STORY.

Pipe or Car-Couplings.

Patented Mau/13,1873r UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ASA G. STORY, OF WATERLOO, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN PIPE OR CAR COUPLINGS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 138,822, dated May 13, 1873,' application led February 28, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ASA Cr. STORY, of Waterloo, in the county of Seneca and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Railroad-Gar Coupling; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing making part of this specification, in which- Figure l is an external view of the coupling. Fig. 2 is a diametrical section through the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the two figures.

The object of this invention is to improve railroad-car couplings so that steam can be conducted through them, thereby admitting of the use of steam-heaters, in the ears and the location ofthe steam-generator on a forward car or on the engine, as will be hereinafter explained.

The following description of my invention will enable others skilled in the art to understand it.

In the accompanying drawing, A A repre-v sent two cylindrical tubes, the ends of which are closed by means of screw caps B B. Through the caps B B pass small steam-pipes C C C C having collars b b on their ends for preventing them from being drawn out ofthe tubes A A and the coupling-boxes D g. The pipes C C are for conducting steam from one tube, A, to the other between the cars, and the pipes C G conduct steam to the heaters in the cars. The end of one of the pipes C passes through a female coupling-box, D, and the end of the opposite pipe C passes through the head of a male coupling-box, g, on which is applied a hand-wheel, W. It is by means of the boxes D and g that cars are coupled and uncoupled. The ends of the pipes C C C C', on which are the collars b b, pass loosely through the caps B B and coupling-boxes D g, so as to allow free vert-ical, lateral, and endwise play of the cars; and for the purpose of making steam-tight joints I employ elastic packing inside of the tubes B and their coupling, as shown in Fig.- 1. This packing consists of elastic cushions e, and metal plates a, which latter are between the cushions c and the collars on the tubes. There may be applied to the outer ends of the coupling-boxes some suitable packing, p p, which, with the internal packing, will prevent the escape of steam at these points. To one of the tubesA I apply a cock, P, for the purpose of drawing off from time totime the water which results from the condensation of steam in the pipes.

It will be seen from the above description 'that I have a tubular car -coupling through which steam can be conducted from one car to another, such coupling being constructed so that it will telescope, and also allow of lateral and vertical movements of iiexure. The tubes A Awill be secured to the platforms of cars in any suitable manner, and, if desirable,

Aall of those tubes which are exposed outside of the cars may be covered with some material, which is a poor conductor of heatfor preventing undue condensation of steam.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

4The couplingvD g, combined with steampipes C C', packing-tubes A A, and steampipes C C, the same constituting a tubular, iiexible, and telescopin g car-coupling, substanntially as described.

ASA G. STORY. Witnesses:

M. D. MERCER, H. WARNER. 

